Apple TV – The Apple TV box can stream content from iTunes, which is a bonus if you're a heavy Apple user.

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Top Web streaming devices9 photos

Google Chromecast – At $35, Google's Chromecast is the least expensive streaming device and maybe the easiest to use.

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Top Web streaming devices – As a gaming console, the PS4 obviously has other uses. But it streams video from some key apps -- and offers a Blu-ray player.

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Roku 3 – With more than 1,000 channels, the Roku 3 may offer the widest selection of any streaming device.

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Roku Streaming Stick – At $50, the Streaming Stick offers the same wealth of content as the Roku 3, although it's a bit slower from time to time.

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Samsung Smart Media Player – This $150 media player replaces the user's cable box and offers content from more than 100 apps (but not Hulu).

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Xbox One – Microsoft's Xbox One console can play live television as well as streamed video from Netflix and other top apps.

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Story highlights

Amazon's Fire TV further crowds the market for streaming devices

Apple, Google, Roku and Samsung are also key players

Report: 7.6 million U.S. households exclusively use Web streaming and downloads

We compare details on some of the field's top devices

When Amazon released its Fire TV system this month, it propelled the company into the increasingly competitive marketplace of devices that stream Web content into the living room.

The set-top box now competes with Apple, Google and Samsung, as well as early innovator Roku and even the gaming world's top consoles for the eyeballs of people who stream services like Netflix, Hulu and YouTube onto their televisions.

These devices are relatively new innovations: Roku first announced a simple Netflix-streaming box in 2008. But in recent years, more and more people have begun using devices that harness the Internet's bountiful offerings and send them, usually via Wi-Fi, to a TV set.

The digital streaming revolution

Just Watched

Amazon takes aim at Roku and Apple TV

According to Experian, almost half of all U.S. adults and 67% of young adults now watch streamed or downloaded video at least once a week.

And 7.6 million households in the United States have "cut the cord," using Web streaming and downloading exclusively instead of cable, satellite or broadcast, for their television viewing, the company said in a report this week.

But it's still a new concept for a lot of folks. And with so many players in the game, not to mention a new wave of "smart TVs" that hook up to the Web on their own, it can be hard to pick a favorite.

If you own a smart TV, you may not need a separate device for streaming. But the software on many smart TVs is still clunky, and most Web-streaming gadgets offer a larger menu of apps and channels.

Here, we break down the top players in the Web television market and compare details about their products.

Notes: No HBO Go, but a new deal offers limited HBO programming (Sorry, no "Game of Thrones"). Features voice search for shows, movies, actors or genres. Doubles as a casual gaming device with titles like "Minecraft."